Late Rep. Ike Skelton's papers and photographs on sale

Jun. 17, 2014 - 01:15PM
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The late Rep. Ike Skelton, D-Mo., ordered in his will that his effects be auctioned. (MANDEL NGAN / AFP/Getty Images)

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The estate of the late congressman Ike Skelton, D-Mo., who served 34 years in Congress, has put thousands of papers, letters and photographs up for sale via an online auction house. At the end of his congressional career, Skelton chaired the House Armed Services Committee, where he was a champion for procurement reform.

In 2010, Skelton and committee Ranking Member John McHugh, R-N.Y., announced a special panel to suggest acquisition reforms for the Defense Department.

Skelton was a moderate first elected in 1976 in a district that eventually trended heavily Republican. He was chairman of the House Armed Services Committee when he lost his re-election bid in the Tea Party wave of 2010 to Republican Vicky Hartzler. Skelton returned to Missouri and died last year at age 81.

According to Jason Roske, owner of KC Auction and Appraisal Co., Skeltonís will directed that the items in his collection be sold, not sent to a library or archive, and the estate contracted with his firm to carry out the auction. The Joint Forces Staff College in Norfolk, Va., rededicated its military research library in Skeltonís name in March 2013, but apparently it is not a repository for his personal papers.